Cao Yun was still mourning his sister, he couldn't bear to part with her. As such, he couldn't let go of her cold hands. With his understanding of the Dao of Death, he could feel that her entire Jing had been converted into Death Energy. Even now, her Upper Dantian was rotting already, and her sea of consciousness had collapsed some time ago. Not only had she died, but she had literally lost her soul. At this very moment, her Soul Embryo and soul were mixed within Cao Yun's Soul Embryo. Nothing of her remained, it was as if she had given all her blood. Although it was originally hers, now it was fully Cao Yun's. Here and there, he could perceive very faint traces of memories, but they weren't anything more than ghost limbs.
Ironically, his improved perception and comprehension of 'Death Verses' were now plaguing him as he could feel in minute detail everything happening within his sister's body. It was now just a piece of rotting meat. It was tearing him apart even more, but he couldn't turn his eyes or senses away. Although reality was bare for him to see, he didn't want to accept it. But he knew that even with the highest level of the Dao of Death, he couldn't bring her back. 'Life Through Death' from the 'Death Verses' could bring dead bodies back to life. However, it wouldn't bring the person back, it would just make the flesh live again as something else. Even if Cao Yun could somehow restore her souls, he wasn't sure whether it would actually bring her back since no one was absolutely certain of the nature of the self.
To be honest, those thoughts were extremely ephemeral. Cao Yun wasn't really considering solutions to bring his sister back to life, he was just mourning and consumed by pain and sorrow. Those thoughts naturally emerged and disappeared just as soon as they had appeared, since Cao Yun didn't focus on them. Many other thoughts appeared. He thought about his own death. He had failed, and the pain was too much... But he couldn't die. First of all, he didn't want death. Besides, he had to accept the pain as it was the last vestige of his sister's existence. Even though it had completely changed, her souls were within him now, he couldn't let despair cloud his judgment.
More strongly, he thought about Emperor Weide's death. Every fiber of his being wanted to torture Emperor Weide to death. He could almost taste his blood already. However, his reason stopped him. For now, they needed him. But, in the end, Emperor Weide would die. Cao Yun would make sure of it, one way or another.
After several long minutes, Cao Yun finally stood up. Despite his powerful cultivation, his body was still healing from the breakthrough, and his mind was a bit hazy. As he stood up, he stumbled and almost fell. Two arms grabbed his shoulders and helped him. On his left, he felt the callous hand of his brother Ren Chao. As Cao Yun turned toward him, he could see complex emotions in his brother's eyes. Clearly, Ren Chao didn't know what to do or what to say. On his skin, Cao Yun felt the blood on his brother's palm, he could sense the rage and fury within it. If Cao Yun asked Ren Chao now, he would gladly slaughter anyone, even a powerful 9th-grade Spirit Warrior. Ren Chao would walk to his death for Cao Yun, just as Cao Yun would give his life for Ren Chao or his other brothers.
On the other side, the young man felt a very tender hand. Without looking, he knew that this hand belonged to Feng Yingyue. With the marks of bloody tears still on his cheeks, Cao Yun looked at her and only saw pain and love in her eyes. At this moment, Cao Yun wanted to lose himself in her embrace, but he couldn't. First of all, he had to deal with important matters. Besides, he didn't want to plague Feng Yingyue with his own weakness, he had to stand strong for everyone.
"Thank you."
Cao Yun's voice was coarse, but he hid all his emotions, it was just his body that was still healing. Even Feng Yingyue barely felt his emotions in his voice, his control over his mind and souls was impressive, but also saddening. Hearing this lack of emotion in his voice while knowing how hard it was for him was tormenting Feng Yingyue. Had they been alone, she would have grabbed him in her embrace, never to let him go. She knew that he needed it more than ever.
The aura emanating from Cao Yun changed suddenly. He was a 1st-grade Exalted Demon. Only a handful of people knew that he was a human who also cultivated the asura system. As such, most cultivators around him thought that he was not an Exalted Demon but a Sage. Obviously, they were all extremely shocked. After all, Emperor Weide was the one who was attempting to break through. Besides, they had seen none of the usual phenomena. Of course, they could attribute that to the cataclysm that had befallen the Imperial City. Whatever had happened had been concealed by array formations.
Cao Yun floated above the ground with Cao Huiying's body right in front of him. Finally, he let go of her hand by delicately putting it on her chest. He did the same for her other hand and closed her eyes himself. For everyone around, she was Yong Ke, Emperor Weide's sister, not Cao Huiying. What all late Spirit Warriors realized was that Cao Yun wasn't using his spiritual senses to float. He truly was a Sage. Somehow, he was able to perceive the Dao and, by doing so, he could alter nature around him. Indeed, without realizing it himself, Cao Yun was using his shallow understanding of the Dao of Wind. Through his martial arts and a few personal experiences, Cao Yun had been confronted with it enough to unconsciously develop a comprehension of it.
With just the Dao of Wind at its current level, Cao Yun couldn't fly as fast or as high as he could with his spiritual senses, but he could absolutely float effortlessly. This alone was a testament to his high cultivation.
Slowly, Cao Yun floated toward Emperor Weide with Cao Huiying's corpse. He stopped a bit closer to Emperor Weide than protocol should have allowed. Some guards were a bit nervous, but Jian Zhenli wasn't saying anything. No one would blame a Sage for slightly breaking decorum. Moreover, the circumstances were exceptional.
What no guard knew was that Emperor Weide had given Jian Zhenli strict orders. Even if Cao Yun were to kill him on the spot, no one was to move against him. Only Cao Yun could protect the Hongchen Kingdom now, and Emperor Weide was ready to give his life. As such, Emperor Weide didn't protest or even resist in any way, shape, or form when Cao Yun entered his sea of consciousness.
The image of Cao Yun appeared right in front of Emperor Weide. They were in a completely empty space with only an infinite, clear ocean below and a perfectly blue sky above. Nothing else existed, but Emperor Weide could tell that this was his sea of consciousness. If he had tried to resist, he might have manifested the various aspects of himself and his martial arts to fight Cao Yun's invasion, but he didn't. In fact, Emperor Weide wanted to appear as submissive as possible. Finally, the two men were about to talk. Both of them had great mind cultivations, so even a few minutes inside their sea of consciousness would feel like a few breaths outside.
"Yong Weichen, I badly desire to separate your head from your body. Nothing would make me happier than to rip your flesh apart with my bare hands while I enjoy your agony and your death. What you've done to my mother, to her family, to my family... You don't deserve any other fate."
Emperor Weide didn't react to the use of his name before he ascended to the throne. In other circumstances, it was a terrible insult, but he wouldn't stand on ceremony, especially not when it came to this specific topic.
"Cao Yun, your mother's Shui family and your Cao family were both great families. They were honorable and served our Hongchen Kingdom. Their slaughter is regrettable... However, I don't regret my orders in the least. Those actions were necessary. In a war for survival, the death of a few is sad, but it is vital for the continuing existence of our kind. Besides, without this, you wouldn't have become the great hero that you are today. Although I am saddened by those deaths, I would give the very same orders again. Whatever you want to inflict upon me, I welcome it, knowing that this is our people's salvation. Mankind will endure, no matter what, no matter the costs. This is my oath and my allegiance. I don't care about anything else but the survival of our Hongchen Kingdom."
Looking at Emperor Weide's eyes, Cao Yun knew that he actually believed every word. There was no fear in him. If he had to die today, he would die. In Cao Yun, this only elicited more anger. The more Emperor Weide thought of himself as being righteous, the more Cao Yun wanted to rip him apart. He wanted to expose him and his monstrous orders. However, he also knew that many people would side with Emperor Weide. In fact, Cao Yun wondered. If he had not been a victim of Emperor Weide's orders, would he have supported his actions for the preservation of the Hongchen Kingdom?
Hopefully, Cao Yun wouldn't have. But deep down, he wasn't as certain as he would have liked. Maybe he would have sided with Emperor Weide, and he hated even the possibility of it. The worst part was that Emperor Weide was right. Without his terrible order, Cao Yun would never have become what he was today. Most likely, Demon God Da Mo would have been successful in destroying the Hongchen Kingdom. After all, even if Emperor Weide had become a Sage, his chances of victory against the entire Empyrean Asura Theocracy would still have been slim. On the other hand, Cao Yun had real chances of success. In fact, he had already thwarted Empyrean Asura's assault on the Hongchen Kingdom by freeing the slaves. At this very moment, several assaults were being led by rebels, thanks to the chaos caused by Cao Yun within demon territory. Moreover, Cao Yun controlled the Sisters of the Abyss.
"Cao Huiying wouldn't want me to kill you right now. The Hongchen Kingdom still needs its Emperor. However, you won't survive this war, no matter what happens. Either you will die in it, or I will kill you at the end. Your reign will be remembered as the period when the Hongchen Kingdom suffered the most. And your successor will be so great and will usher in an era of such prosperity that your name will disappear from history. You won't be remembered in any other way than as a failed and weak Emperor in a time that needed more powerful rulers. On the other hand, I will make sure that my family's name endures the eons to come. And you will help me in this endeavor. You will make sure that everyone knows that your so-called daughter was in fact Cao Huiying. You took her in to protect her. I will reveal my name as Cao Yun, and you will support me publicly.
"I will take over the rule of the entire army, of all the Imperial Brocade Guards. You will only be Emperor in name, for the public. Huang Cixi will administer the Hongchen Kingdom, and you will name her your official successor. I am absolutely certain that everyone will support this decision. Then, you will fight for me, you will do whatever I want, you and your men. All of you, all those who killed innocent people for your grand scheme, will die in combat one way or another. Since you thought that sacrificing lives for the greater good was essential, your lives are forfeit. And I will sacrifice them for the greater good on the battlefield, sparing other soldiers.
"To make sure of it all, I will put seals on you. When the time comes, I will activate these seals, and you will die. Do you accept?"
Cao Yun spoke very matter-of-factly. Although it ended as a question, the tone was extremely clear. Emperor Weide had no choice. If he tried to resist, Cao Yun would force a seal on him. Maybe Emperor Weide could prevent it, considering how weak Cao Yun currently was, but he most likely would be maimed, crippled, or even killed in the process. Moreover, Emperor Weide didn't want to die for nothing. Dying on a battlefield to kill Empyrean Asura and save the Hongchen Kingdom was exactly what he desired. In fact, listening to Cao Yun's words didn't frighten Emperor Weide, this proved to him that he was right. Cao Yun would save the Hongchen Kingdom. Even if he wasn't remembered at all, Emperor Weide didn't care so long as his people survived.
Of course, Cao Yun could feel all of that. He wanted to puke because he couldn't kill Emperor Weide. Without him, Cao Yun wasn't sure they could win the war. Even with him, he wasn't certain either. Unfortunately, Cao Yun couldn't kill the people he wanted right now. After the war, if they were war heroes, it would be even harder to kill them. As such, he would make sure that they died on the battlefield, one way or another. Emperor Weide would never return to his throne. Officially, Empyrean Asura would kill him, even if Cao Yun had to activate his seal to make it look as though Empyrean Asura had.
Unfortunately, Cao Yun couldn't put his seal in Emperor Weide's mind right now, as people would notice it. He would have to do it later in private. After all, the seal he had in mind was extremely brutal. Besides, he probably needed some rest before he attempted the process, as he would use his Dao of Death to make the seal even more powerful.
Cao Yun didn't bend before Emperor Weide, and he made sure that Cao Huiying's body stayed closer to him while pretending to present his daughter's body to the Emperor. Emperor Weide didn't let it show on his face. Instead, he looked at Cao Yun with sadness in his eyes. Then, he spoke out loud so that everyone could hear.
"Your Cao family has suffered a lot. Your blood has truly given birth to great heroes of our Hongchen Kingdom. How much pain can one family endure for its people?"